Ask.com, once known as Ask Jeeves, has officially closed its doors. The search engine ended operations on May 1, 2026, as its owner sharpens business focus. The shutdown marks the end of a 25-year run in answering online queries.
Ask.com, the search engine famous for its butler mascot Jeeves, shut down on May 1, 2026. Originally branded as Ask Jeeves before its 2006 rebranding to Ask.com under InterActiveCorp (IAC), the site has now ceased all search operations entirely. This closure concludes a quarter-century of service to millions of users worldwide. IAC announced the decision in a statement on the website, which reads: “As IAC continues to sharpen its focus, we have made the decision to discontinue our search business, which includes Ask.com.” The message adds that Ask.com officially closed on May 1, 2026, after 25 years of answering the world's questions. The farewell note thanked users and noted, “Jeeves' spirit endures.” Ask Jeeves popularized typing full questions into search bars, influencing habits still seen today on platforms like Google. Its natural language responses foreshadowed modern AI chatbots such as ChatGPT. Ask.com now joins other early internet relics in retirement, including AltaVista, which shut down in 2013, as well as AIM and AOL dial-up services.